PiFò Haiti

Find out what's been happening this year in our Growing Gardens and Grounded Flights - https://mailchi.mp/pifohaiti/growing-gardens-and-grounded-flights update.

2024 Finding Beauty in the Hard Places - https://mailchi.mp/pifohaiti/2024-blessings-in-the-difficult-times

From a life changing well at the garden, a 5-week "extended" trip and unprecedented violence and food insecurity, we pause to be grateful for all those who have supported PiFò Haiti in 2024. From our families in Canada and Haiti, thank you for partnering with us. Have a wonderful Christmas season. www.pifohaiti.org

Thank you to everyone who has reached out asking how they can help. We have decided to send emergency funds ‼️ to our account in Haiti to assist families fleeing the gangs in Archaie and coming in overloaded boats to La Gonâve. Finding food and housing on an island already in crisis mode is putting an enormous amount of stress on the community. We’ve been told this is the most helpful way to assist right now.
*All the extra funds received outside our regular monthly donations will be added to this emergency fund*🙏🏽🇭🇹
PLEASE do not give up on Haiti. Every thought, prayer and dollar and conversation encourages our team during this challenging time.
If you live in Canada 🇨🇦 or the US 🇺🇸, the donation link is:
https://gcfcanada.com/ca/projects/pifo-haiti

For those in the UK, please donate through WorldShare UK 🇬🇧 at:
https://worldshare.org.uk/ministries/pifo-haiti

gcfcanada.com “PiFò” is a Haitian Créole word meaning, “stronger”. Since 2011 we have been working alongside a team of Haitians on the island of La Gonâve to empower future generations through education and development programs. Our goal is to support local initiatives and the economy through in-countr...

Please pray for the communities recently attacked in Haiti. Many people are desperately trying to cross the water to get to La Gonâve since they were forced from their homes and all the access roads are blocked.
It’s an even more intense situation since La Gonâve is already in crisis mode for food and supplies.
Yesterday the UN helicopter we have been using to get to and from the island was shot at near PAP (see info below) 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽

“Gangs on Thursday opened fire and hit a U.N. helicopter, forcing it to land in Port-au-Prince in the latest attack in Haiti's capital as violence surges once again.

No one was injured as several rounds of gunfire hit the helicopter that was carrying three crew members and 15 passengers, according to a U.N. source who was not authorized to confirm the incident. The helicopter, which had departed from Port-au-Prince before it was attacked, landed safely, the source said.

The attack comes five months after Haiti's main international airport reopened following coordinated gang attacks that forced it to close for nearly three months.

The violence has spilled to nearby areas including Arcahaie, where some 50 suspected gang members died this week after attacking the coastal town located just northwest of the capital. Among the dead are at least a dozen gunmen who drowned after their boat capsized, a government official said Thursday.

While the majority were killed by police, a group of gunmen drowned on Wednesday after their boat hit the reef as they ferried ammunition to gangs attacking the town of Arcahaie, said Wilner Réné from Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency.

He told Radio Caraïbes that the attack began on Monday, with gunmen burning homes and cars across Arcahaie.

When the gangs ran out of ammunition, they hid in nearby areas and were ferreted out by residents and police, he said.

The attack is still ongoing, and Réné warned that officers on the scene urgently need reinforcements from soldiers and special police units.

The attack is blamed on a gang coalition called Viv Ansanm, which also has targeted communities in Port-au-Prince in recent days. Those attacks have displaced more than 10,000 people in the capital in just one week, according to a report released Thursday by the U.N.'s International Organization for Migration. More than half of those left homeless crowded into 14 makeshift shelters, including schools. The remainder are temporarily staying with relatives.

The spike in gang violence comes just months after a U.N.-backed mission led by Kenyan police began with the aim of quelling a surge in violence from gangs, who control more than 80% of Port-au-Prince. More than 700,000 people have been left homeless, and thousands have been killed.

The U.S. government and top Haitian officials have warned that the Kenyan-led mission lacks personnel and funding and have asked that it be replaced with a U.N.-peacekeeping mission”.

Excerpt from the UN Press release Sept 23, 2024.
Thank you Tammy Rae for always bringing current resources to our attention.
People have asked me regularly if the violence is improving in Haiti since the Kenyan-led troops have arrived. Here's a detailed answer.
"Gang violence continues to ravage the country. Heavily armed gangs attack police stations, loot hospitals, occupy courthouses and destroy other critical installations. These are deliberate efforts to erode State authority, sow chaos and make it easier to prey on vulnerable communities.

Between January and end-August alone, the United Nations has documented more than 3,400 people killed and 1,600 others injured in gang violence — with over 1,000 people kidnapped by these groups.

Other shocking human rights abuses have been amply documented, including r**e, forced recruitment and exploitation. More than 578,000 people are internally displaced, over half of them children. Nearly half of the population are food insecure and lack access to clean drinking water.

The proliferation of armed gangs in the capital has led to an alarming rise in sexual and gender-based violence mainly against women and girls. In some areas, health service providers have reported receiving 40 r**e victims a day. The perpetrators of these heinous crimes must face justice.

Many children are victims of crossfire, exploitation and trafficking, forced to join gangs and increasingly used to carry out attacks. [UNICEF estimates that 30 to 50 per cent of gang members are children.]"
PiFò Haiti

I am always so humbled by the support The Great Commission Foundation gives PiFò Haiti and also for Ken and our family. I had the privilege of doing a video interview with Alex at GCF while I was "delayed" in Haiti earlier this year. I have to admit, I was a bit choked up watching it after being home for 5 months. The emotions will always be raw.
Forever grateful to God for revealing beauty in the hard places.

Pifò Haiti - Growth in Times of Crisis Haiti is currently experiencing an unprecedented crisis characterized by political unrest, rampant gang violence, widespread looting, and limited access to money and essential supplies. These factors are exacerbating the already dire poverty situation, making daily life a struggle for millions of Ha...